Tobacco looping machine



sePt- 27, 1938'- D. R. DlNKlNs TOBACCO LOOPING MACHINE S sheets-sheet 1 Filed May 5, 1957 ATTORNEY Sept. 27, 1938.

D. R. DlNKlNS TOBACCO LOOP ING MACHINE Filed May 3, 1937 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS Sept. 27, 1938` D. R. DlNKlNs TOBACCO LOOPING MACHINE Filed May 3, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. @LAW ATTORNEYS Sept. 27, 1938. D, R. DINKINS TOBACCO LOOPING MACHINE Filed May 5, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 www@ NS o o o o o 0.0:.

Nm, kw.

1NVENTOR.

BY ATTORNEYS Sept. 27, 1938. D, R. DINKINS TOBACCO LOOPING MACHINE Filed May 5, 195'? 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 IIY ATTORNEYS Patented sept. 27, 193s UNITED STATES TOBACCO LOOPING MACHINE Delbert R. Dinkins,

East Bend, N. C., assignor of one-half to Briggs-Shaffner Company, Winston-Salem, N. C., a corporation of North Carolina Application May 3, 1937, Serial No. 140,553

9 Claims.

to new and useful immachines for looping tobacco This invention relates provements in hands.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a support for the tobacco hands and a looping mechanism which are relatively movable whereby the hands may be successively placed on the support and looped together by a connected series of enchained loops.

Another object of the invention lies in the provision of a carriage which supports the lobping mechanism and which is movable step-bystep relative to the support for the tobacco hands whereby the enchained around the sucessively placed hands subsequent to the feeding movements of the carriage.

With these and other objects in view which will more fully appear, the nature of the invention will be more clearly understood by following the description, the appended claims, and the several views illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:-

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a machine constructed in accordance with my invention, the view showing the carriage at the end of a feed movement and the needle at the rear end of its stroke,

Figure 2 is a front elevation thereof,

Figure 3 is a vertical cross-section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2,

Figure 4 is an enlarged detail section of the carriage feed pawl mechanism,

Figure 5 is an enlarged detail section taken on the line `5 5 of Figure 1,

Figure 6 is an enlarged front elevation of the needle plate, the needle being shown in section,

Figure 7 is an enlarged vertical section showing the needle and the needle plate,

Figure 8 is an enlarged vertical section taken on the line 8 8 of Figure 1,

, Figure 9 is an enlarged vertical section taken on the line 9 9 of Figure 1 Figure 10 is an enlarged top spreader,

Figure 11 is a front elevation thereof,

Figure 12 is a plan view showing more or less diagrammatically the positions of the needle and spreader when the needle is partaking of its loop shedding movement,

Figure 13 is a similar view but showing the needle at the end of its loop shedding stroke and subsequent to the feed travel of the carriage, and

plan view of the loops will be formed,

Figure 14 is a perspective view of the end of the supporting rod.

Like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several gures o1' the drawings. y

Referring to the drawings, the invention includes a stationary track A, a horizontal supporting rod B located in iront of the track for supporting the looped tobacco hands C, a carriage D which is intermittently moved along the rails, 10 a carriage feeding means E, and a thread looping mechanism F mounted on the carriage for' forming a series of connected single thread loops around the tobacco hands.

The track A is of indeterminate length and 15 comprises spaced upper and lower horizontal rails 5 and 6 of angle iron construction which are secured together by vertical tie rods 1. The track is supported at its ends on posts 8 by means of screws 9 which pass through openings in the 20 rails, one only of said posts being shown. It will be noted that the upper rail 5 includes an. upwardly projecting flange I0, and that the lower rail 4includes a downwardly projecting flange II. 25

The supporting rod B is substantially coextensive in length with the track A, and is mounted at each end on the lower rail 6 of said track through the medium of a forwardly extending bracket arm I2 secured to the rail, end of the arm being provided with spaced vertical guides I3, I3 between which is mounted a vertical arm I4 depending from the rod, said arm I4 having'a bolt and slot connection I5 with the bracket arm whereby the rod may be adjusted 35 vertically to suit working conditions.

The tobacco hands C are preferably positioned alternately on opposite sides of the supporting rod B and are retained in said positions by a. connected series of `enchained loops I6 formed by 40 the looping mechanism F from a single thread or twine I'I, the supply of which is located within a container I8 mounted on the carriage D.

The carriage D includes a horizontal flat plate I9 which is disposed above the track A and pro- 45 jects forwardly thereof above the supporting rod B. Rigidly secured to the under face of the carriage plate I9 adjacent the rear corners thereof are bearing blocks 20, 20 which rest upon and have sliding contact with the upper edge of the 50 vertical flange Ill of the upper rail 5. Bearing rollers 2 I, 2| are mounted on the ends of the plate I 9 for rotation about vertical axes, the rollers contacting the rear face of the flange I0 of the upper rail 5. A vertical bracket arm 22 is posi- 55 left hand the forward ao at 31 to the rear arm 34 of the lever 32.

tioned centrally between the rollers 2I, k2| but in front of the track A. 'I'his bearing arm is rigidly connected at its upper end to the plate I9, and journaled on the lower end thereof is a bearing roller 23 which contacts the front edge of the lower rail 6. Thus the rollers 2|, 2| and 23 cooperate with the vertical track A to maintain the carriage D in a horizontal plane and also permit said carriage to move either to the right or left along said track. The plate I9 is formed with a longitudinal slot 24 which is disposed directly above the supporting rod B, and extends inwardly from the right hand end thereof., 'I'he plate is also formed with an opening 25 which is located directly in rear of the slot 24 and adjacent the right hand end thereof, the slot and' the opening being in communication with each other.

The carriage feeding means E is manually operable to feed the carriage intermittently to the right along the track. To this end, the upper edge of the flange I0 of the upper rail 5 is provided with a series of ratchet teeth 26 which extend substantially throughout the entire length thereof. A spring pawl 21 is secured to a carrier 28 which is slidably mounted in guides 29, 29 located on the upper face of the carriage plate I9 for longitudinal movements relative thereto, the pawl projecting downwardly through an opening 30 formed in the plate I9 for engagement with said ratchet teeth. A linger knob 3I is attached -to the pawl for facilitating the disengagement of the same from said teeth when it is desired to return the carriage along the track to its initial position. A lever 32 is positioned on the plate I9 on the right of the opening 25 and is fulcrumed intermediate its ends to swing about a vertical pivot 33, the rear arm 34 of the? lever having a pin and slot connection 35 with the pawl carrier 28. A link 36 extends longitudinally of the carriage and has its right hand end pivotally connected as 'I'he left hand end of the link 36 is pivotally connected as at 38 to the rearwardly extending arm 39 of a bell crank lever 40 which is fulcrumed as at 4I to the plate I9 on the left of the slot 24. 'I'he other arm 42 of the bell crank lever has a pin and slot connection 43 with the rear end of a horizontal pull rod 44 which is slidably mounted in guides 45, 45 attached to the plate I9 the pull rod being disposed above an elongated slot 46 formed in the plate. Rigidly secured to the under face of the rod 44 and projecting downwardly through the slot 46 is a lug 41, Fig. 9, having a vertically disposed slot 48 forming a resultant fork. Rigidly secured to and depending from the front portion of the carriage plate I9 in front of the supporting rod B, is la pair of spaced bearing arms 49, 49 in` which is journaled a horizontal rock shaft 56. Fixed to the left hand end of the shaft 50 is an upwardly extending rock arm 5I which carries a horizontal pin 52 at its upper end for sliding engagement in the slot 48 of the pull rod 44. A coil spring 53 has one end connected to the pivot 38 on the arm 39 of the bell crank lever 40 and its other end connected as at 5 4 to the forward arm 55 of the lever 32. This spring functions to retain yieldably the pawl in its normal retracted or non-feeding position, and also to retain yieldably the pull rod 44 at the forward end of its stroke. A stirrup 56 is connected to the lower end of a chain 51 which is trained over a pulley 58 rotatthe rock arm 5I is normally at the rear end of its stroke, that when the stirrup 56 is depressed the pawl 21 will remain stationary in engagement with the associated tooth 26 and the lever 32 will swing about the pivot connection 35 thereby tensioning the spring 53 and moving the carriage D one step to the right, and that upon release of the stirrup the spring will return the parts to their initial positions during which time the lever 32 will swing about its fulcrum 33.

The looping mechanism F includes a horizon'- tally reciprocatory needle 59, a horizontally reciprocatory loop spreader 60, and a loop retainer 6I. 'Ihe needle 59 is slldably mounted in guides 62, 62 on the carriage plate I9 located in front of the slot 24 and is ,movable across said slot and into the opening 25, the needle path thus being in a plane at right angles to the direction of movement of the carriage. The rear end of the needle is pointed and is provided with an eye 63 for receiving the thread or twine I1. The needle is disposed above an elongated slot-64 formed in the carriage plate I9. Rigidly secured to the under face of the needle and projecting downwardly through the slot 64, Fig. 8, is a lug 65 having a vertically disposed slot 66 forming a' resultant fork. Fixed to the right hand end of the rock shaft 50 is an upwardly extending rock arm 61 which carries a horizontal pin 68 at its upper end for sliding engagement in the slot 66. Thus when the stirrup 56 is depressed to feed the carriage one step to the right, the needle is moved rearwardly across the slot 24 until the eye 63 is well into the opening 25. 'Ihe loop spreader 66 is slidably mounted in a guide 69 on the carriage plate I9 located in rear of the slot 24 and on the right of the opening 25, and is movable in a plane at right angles to the plane of the needle movement. The left end of the spreader is pointed, and the reciprocatory movement of the spreader is such that the pointed end traverses the needle path and passes oyer the needle, Fig. l2. The right hand end of the spreader is connected to the front arm 55 of the lever 32 by a pin and slot connection 10. Thus when the stirrup 56 is released to effect a feeding of the carriage and a return or forward movement of the needle, the spreader will be moved to the left, the point of the spreader passing in front of the needle eye. A vertically disposed needle plate 1I is disposed between the slot 24 and the opening 25, and is provided with a downwardly extending slot 12 for receiving the needle. The left wall 13 of the needle slot 12 is located in close proximity to the needle. The left end of the nedle plate is bent to form an ear 1Ia which is attached to the carriage plate I9, and the right hand end of the plate is bent to form the spreader guide 69.- The retainer 6I, which is below the spreader 60, is in the form of a bell crank lever, is fulcrumed to swing about a vertical pivot 1'4 on said spreader, and comprises arms 15 and 16, the arm 15 being pointed and constituting a retainer arm. A vertical stop pin 11 is mounted on the carriage table in a position to be engaged alternately by the arms 15, 16 of the retainer during each reciprocation of the spreader 60 and thereby rock the retainer.

The left hand end of the supporting rod B is formed with a slot 18, as shown in Fig. 14, to receive and anchor the free end of the thread or twine I1.

In operation, let it be assumed that several tobacco hands have been successively placed against the supporting rod B and alternately on needle loop.

opposite sides thereof and the hands secured together by a connected series of enchained loops IB, as shown in Fig. 1. In this figure, the carriage has been fed one step but the stirrup 58 has not been released, the needle has entered the previously formed loop which had extended around the spreader, and the spreader has just cast off said loop around the needle. Upon release of the stirrup, the spring 53 will swing the lever 32 which will retract the pawl 21 to its initial position, and also move the spreader to the left whereby said spreader will enter the During this movement of the spreader, the retainer arm 15 will also enter said loop and immediately thereafter the arm 16 will contact the stop 11 and eiect a rocking of the' retainer 6I, as shown in Fig. 12, whereby said arm 15 will be moved to the right and will carry the loop therewith. Simultaneously with the spreader entering the loop, the needle begins its forward movement to shed said loop onto the spreader. When the needle 59 and the spreader 60 have completed these strokes, they are in the positions shown in Fig. 13. 'I'he operator then places a tobacco hand in position on the support B with the stems bearing against the -leg of the loop which extends from the needle, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 13. The operator then depresses the stirrup 56, the carriage D is moved one step, the needle 59 is moved rearwardly on the right hand side of the stems and into the loop which is around the spreader 60 and retainer 6i, and the spreader is returned to its initial position shown in Fig. 1 during which time the retainer has been swung about its pivot 14 to permit the loop to be shed therefrom.

It is of course to be understood that the details of structure and arrangement of parts may be variously changed and modied without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

I claim:-

1. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a support for tobacco hands, of a loop forming mechanism mounted in cooperative relation to said support, and means for effecting a relative feeding movement between the sup- `port and the loop forming mechanism and for actuating the latter, said loop forming mechanism comprising a reciprocatory needle and a reciprocatory spreader movable in a horizontal plane above the support and in planes at right angles to each other.

2. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a stationary horizontally disposed supporting rod for tobacco hands, of a stationary track arranged in parallelism therewith, said track being provided with a series of ratchet teeth `extending longitudinally thereof, a carriage movable along said track and above the supporting rod, a loop forming mechanism mounted on said carriage, and means for intermittently feeding the carriage along the track and for actuating the loop forming mechanism, said feeding means including a pawl movably mounted on the carrlage for cooperation with said ratchet teeth.

3. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a stationary horizontally disposed supporting rod for tobacco hands, of a stationary track arranged in parallelism therewith, said track being provided with a series of ratchet teeth extending longitudinally thereof, a carriage movable along said track and above the supporting rod, a loop forming mechanism mounted on said carriage, and means for intermittently feeding the carriage along the track and for actuating the loop forming mechanism, said feeding means including a pawl movably mounted on the carriage for cooperation with said ratchet teeth, a lever mounted on the carrlage and connected to the pawl, a bell crank lever fulcrumed on the carriage, a link connecting the pawlv lever and one arm of the bell crank lever, a spring connecting said pawl lever and said bell crank arm, and manually operable means connected to the other arm of said bell crank lever.

4. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a stationary horizontally disposed supporting rod for tobacco hands, of a stationary track arranged in parallelism therewith, said track being provided with a series of ratchet teeth extendinglongitudinally thereof, a carriage movable along said track and above the supporting rod, a loop forming mechanism mounted on said carriage, and means for intermittently feeding the carriage along the track and for actuating the loop forming mechanism, s'aid feeding means including a pawl movably mounted onv the carriage for cooperation with said ratchet teeth, a'lever mounted on the carriage and connected to the pawl, a bell crank lever fulcrumed on the carriage, a link connecting the pawl lever and one arm of the bell crank lever, a spring connecting said pawl lever and said bell crank arm, a pull rod slidably mounted on the carriage and connected to the other arm of the bell crank lever, a pulley journaled on the carriage, a stirrup, and a flexible connection extending over Ithe pulley and connected at its ends to the pull rod and to the stirrup.

5. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a stationary horizontally disposed supporting rod for tobacco hands, of a stationary track arranged in parallelism therewith, a carrlage movable along said track and above the supporting rod, a loop forming mechanism mounted on said carriage and including a horizontally reciprocatory needle movable in a plane at right angles to the direction of carriage travel, and a cooperating horizontally reciprocatory loop spreader movable in a plane at right angles thereto, and means for intermittently feeding the carriage along the track and for actuating the loop forming mechanism.

6. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a stationary horizontally disposed supporting rod for tobacco hands, of a stationary track arranged in parallelism therewith and having a series of ratchet teeth extending longitudinally thereof, a carriage movable along said track and above the supporting rod, means for intermittently feeding the carriage along the track including a pawl movably mounted on the carriage for cooperation with the ratchet teeth, a lever mounted on the carriage and connected to the pawl, a rock shaft journaled on the carriage, operating connectionsy between the rock shaft and the pawl lever, a loop forming mechanism mounted on the carriage including a horizontally reciprocatory needle movable in a plane at right angles to the direction of carriage travel, operating connections between the rock shaft and the needle, a horizontally reciprocatory loop spreader cooperating with the needle and movable in a plane at right angles thereto, said spreader being operatively connected to said pawl lever, and means for rocking said shaft.

7. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a stationary horizontally disposed supporting rod for tobacco hands, of a stationary track arranged in parallelism therewith and having a. series of ratchet teeth extending longitudinally thereof, a carriage movable along said 5 track and above the supporting rod,-means for intermittently feeding the carriage along the track including a pawl movably mounted on the carriage for cooperation with the ratchet teeth, a lever mounted on the carriage and connected to the pawl, a rock shaft journaled on the carriage,

angles to the direction of carriage travel, op-

erating connections between the rock shaft and needle, a horizontally reciprocatory loop spreader cooperating with the needle and movable in a plane at right. angles thereto, said spreader being operatively connected to said pawl lever, means for rocking said shaft, and spring means for returning the pawl, the needle and the spreader to their initial positions subsequent to each feeding movement of the carriage.

8. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a support for tobacco hands, of a chain loop forming mechanism mounted in cooperative relation to said support, and means effecting a relative feeding movement between the support and the loop forming mechanism and for actuating the latter to form a connected series of enchained loops embracing and connecting but not penetrating the hands and subject to being unravelled by longitudinal pull Without breakage of portions of the hands.

9. In a tobacco looping machine, the combination with a support for tobacco hands, of a chain loop forming mechanism mounted in cooperativeA relation to said support, and means effecting a relative feeding movement between the support and the loop forming mechanism and for actuating the latter to form a connected series of enchained loops embracing and connecting but not penetrating the hands and subject to be unravelled by longitudinal pull without breakage of portions of the hands, said loop forming mechanism including a needle and a spreader each reciprocable across the path of movement of the other.

DELBERT R. DINKINS. 

